Bears vs. Seahawks Game Preview

Chicago Bears

It was a heartbreaking loss for the Chicago Bears in Week 1 when they allowed Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers to erase a 20-point deficit to win 24-23. However, the Bears look to have some excellent players, including Khalil Mack, which should help them rebound at home.

Khalil Mack whacked havoc in the first half-time against the Packers, becoming the first player since 1982 to have a strip-sack, fumble recovery, interception and interception returned for a touchdown in a single half. He should again play well against a terrible Seattle offensive line.

Seattle Seahawks

Once again, it looks like it will be up to Russell Wilson to carry the Seattle Seahawks this season. Wilson did all he could against Denver in Week 1, but six sacks and two picks proved too costly for Seattle who fell to 0-1 to start their 2018 campaign.

Seattle again looks like it has one of the worst offensive lines in football, which will do Wilson no favours in this game. Also, with Doug Baldwin out for Seattle’s Week 2 game, the Seahawks will need to rely too much on inconsistent wide receivers and a non-existent running game.

Game Snippet

It is moderately surprising how little these two teams have played each other over the last 15 years. Including playoffs, Seattle and Chicago have played ten times since 2003 and only twice since drafting Russell Wilson. Seattle is 2-0 with Wilson at quarterback, winning by six points in 2012 and 26-0 in 2015.

Bears vs. Seahawks Betting Tips

1

Seattle 6-4 S/U against Bears over last ten

2

Seattle 3-0 S/U against Bears since 2011

3

Seattle 6-4 ATS against Bears over last ten

4

8-2 O/U in last ten games

5

Seattle 5-2 S/U in last seven road games

Bears vs. Seahawks Game Predictions

Moneyline Prediction

Even if some of the numbers contradict betting on the Bears to win, watching Seattle play last week suggests the Seahawks are not a great team to wager on when playing a strong pass rush. After being sacked six times in Week 1, Wilson has now been sacked 49 times since the start of the 2017 NFL season, which is third most in the NFL.

The Bears offence should also perform better in Week 2. Their first-half performance against the Packers shows that new Head Coach Matt Nagy can run a successful modern NFL offence. As long as he does not revert to the more conservative approach he took in the second half the Bears should be able to score against Seattle.

Defensively, the Bears with Khalil Mack, are better than Seattle. Seattle allowed 470 yards of offence to the Denver Broncos and could not make stops late in the game when they needed the ball back. While they will likely limit the Bears to less than 470 yards in Week 2 (due to how the Bears play), they will struggle in mismatches Matt Nagy creates through his play calling.

The line on this game is set pretty low for two teams that combined for over 600 yards and 47 points against tough road opponents. Each team has talent on offence and the extra day to prepare should help each team fix some Week 1 kinks on their offence.

Also, even if the Bears defence smoothers Wilson, there is always a chance for a defensive score (or at least good field position) for the Bears, helping push the game total higher.

Lastly, eight of last ten games between these two teams have gone over. While the 15-year time frame is long, during that era one or both of these teams had an elite defence, meaning this game should see points even if the defences play well.